WraOWlES  IN  AMERICAN  HISTORY. 


INDIAN  TRACTS. 
No.  II. 


250  copies  printed. 
No 


Condition  of  the  Indian 
Trade  in  North  America, 
1767,  as  described  in  a 
letter  to  Sir  William 
Johnson 


BY 


SIR  GUY  CARLETON, 

Governor  of  Canada. 


t* 


BROOKLYN,  N.  Y.: 

Historical  rkiNTiNc,  Cluu. 

1890. 


FEB  2  ft  19^3 


NOTE. 

This  letter  is  printed  from  the  orig- 
inal manuscript  in  the  possession  of 
Mr.  Gordon  L.  Ford. 

Paul  Leicester  Ford. 

qy  Clark  St.,  Brooklyn,  N.   F. 


Quebec  27th  March  1767. 
Sir:  I  received  the  Favor  of  your 
Letter  of  the  27th  of  January,  and 
shall  allvvays  think  myself  obliged  to 
you  for  informing  me  of  any  irregular- 
ities committed  by  Persons  from  this 
Province,  as  by  that  information  I  may 
be  enabled  to  take  such  Steps  here,  as 
may  correct  them  for  the  future,  and 
assist  you  in  your  I'.ndeavors  to  pre- 
vent all  Cause  of  Discontent  to  the 
Indians  from  hence  :  in  Return  I.  will 
communicate  to  you  the  Complaints 
which  I  receive  here,  as  I  imagine 
that  mutual  Information  must  be  of 
Advantage  to  His  Majesty's  Service, 
whose  Intentions  are,  that  His  Ser- 
vants should  promote  the  Good  of  all 
his  subjects,  as  well  as  prevent  any 
just  Cause  of  discontent,  to  those  un- 
der his  Protection — 

(7) 


8 

That  the  French  who  must  allways 
be  our  Rivals  in  Trade,  often  our  open 
Enemies,  should  take  every  Oppor- 
tunity of  gaining  the  Affection  of  the 
Indians,  and  of  misrepresenting  us,  I 
expect  as  a  Thing  of  Course ;  it  be- 
longs to  us  to  defeat  their  Endeavours, 
whether  fair  or  fraudulent,  and  by 
wise  Regulations,  honest  dealing,  and 
by  Kind  Treatment  to  attach  them  to 
us,  and  avail  ourselves  of  those  exten- 
sive Channels  of  Trade,  to  enlarge  our 
Commerce  to  the  utmost — 

Your  Comjilaints  of  the  Canadians, 
by  which  Name  1  distinguish  the  Sub- 
jects of  the  King  our  Master,  acquired 
by  the  Conciucst  of  this  Province,  are 
so  general,  thai  1  can  only  make  my 
iMiquiries,  and  speak  to  them  in  as 
general  a  Maimer ;  When  1  talk  here 
of  that  Perfidy,  false  Stories,  or  Views 
of  exciting  an  Indian  War,  )ou  com- 
plain of,  they  appeal  to  C<M<ine1  Glad- 


wyn,  and  all  the  rest  of  our  officers, 
who  were  Spectators  of  the  last,  and 
are  confident  these  will  give  Testi- 
mony of  different  dispositions  in  them 
at  that  Time,  when  such  Views  mii;ht 
have  been  more  excusable,  than  at 
present,  and  that  even  then  some  of 
them  were  utterly  ruined  by  the  In- 
dians for  their  Attachment  to  us  ;  they 
very  plainly-  shew  me,  that  such  a  War 
must  be  very  destructive  to  them,  and 
in  Case  of  such  a  Misfortune,  that  thev 
then  did,  and  would  .ii^ain  cheerfully 
take  up  Arms,  to  reduce  them  to 
Peace,  by  I'^c^rcc.  I-A'er  since  my  i\r- 
rival,  1  have  observed  the  Canadians 
with  an  Attention,  bordering,'  upon 
Suspicion,  but  hithcrtn  have  not  tlis- 
covered  in  them  either  Actions  or 
Sentiments,  which  do  Mot  bi'loutj^  to 
good  Subjects.  Whether  ihey  are 
rii^ht  or  wroni;  in  their  Opinion  of  the 
Indian  Trade,  I  submit  to  those  whom 


lO 

the  King  has  appointed  to  direct  and 
superintend  the  same,  but  the  unani- 
mous Opinion  of  all  'lere,  Canadians 
and  British,  is,  that  unless  the  present 
Restraints  are  taken  off,  that  Trade 
must  greatly  Suffer,  This  Province  be 
nearly  ruined,  Great  Britain  be  a  con- 
siderable Looser,  and  France  the  sole 
Gainer,  as  they  must  turn  the  greatest 
Part  of  the  P^urrs  down  the  Missis- 
sippi, instead  of  the  St.  Lawrence; 
they  compute  that  a  very  large  Quan- 
tity of  Merchandise,  formerly  passed 
through  this  Province  to  Nations  un- 
known to  Pondiac,  and  too  di.  tant  to 
come  to  any  of  our  Ports,  and  that  so 
much  is  lost  of  the  Consumption  of 
British  Manufactures  Th'::y  say  that 
their  own  Interests  will  allways  be  a 
sufficient  Reason  and  Motive  to  treat 
these  People  well,  and  to  use  their  ut- 
most luideavours  to  keep  them  in 
Peace,  and  the  Canadians  will  engage 


II 

to  take  some  English  with  them  in 
every  Canoe,  to  acquire  a  knowledge 
of  these  Countries  and  the  Language, 
to  shew  they  have  no  Jealousy  at  their 
becoming  acquainted  with  this  Trade; 
Tis  imagined  here,  that  the  other  Pro- 
vinces, who  arc  neither  acquainted 
with  these  Countries,  nor  so  advan- 
tageously situated  for  this  Trade  are 
the  secret  Causes  of  their  being  so  se- 
verely fettered  ;  they  presume  to  think 
each  Province  should  be  permitted  to 
avail  itself  of  it's  natural  Situation,  and 
acquired  Advantages,  and  that  it 
should  be  as  unreasonable  in  us  to 
expect  the  Ports  to  the  Southward 
should  be  shut  up  by  Regulations,  as 
long  as  ours  are  by  a  se\ere  Climate  ; 
that  in  this  Respect  all  the  King's 
Subjects  should  be  considered  as  Bro- 
thers, or  one  Family,  and,  that  the 
Rivalship  ought  not  to  be  between 
Province  and   Province,  but   between 


12 

the  King's  Subjects  and  those  of 
France  and  Spain ;  some  have  offered 
to  prove,  that  two  Years  ago,  while 
they  were  confined  to  the  Fort,  the 
French  or  Spaniards  from  the  Missis- 
sippi came  within  twenty  Leagues  of 
the  Detroit,  and  carried  off  the  very 
Furs,  that  were  intended  to  clear  off 
the  Credit  given  the  Indians  the  year 
before.  They  even  assert  tis  impossi- 
ble to  prevent  them  from  carrying  off 
by  far  the  greatest  Part  of  that  Trade, 
unless  those  Restraints  are  taken  off; 
they  maintain  that  the  only  possible 
Means  of  removing  the  Discontents 
of  the  Indians,  for  not  being  supplied 
with  the  Necessaries  of  Life  as  for- 
merly, is  to  permit  them  to  go  among 
them,  as  was  the  Practice  of  this  Col- 
ony,  that  thereby  they  will  be  enabled 
to  undersell  the  Mississippi  Traders, 
detect  their  Artificies,  and  be  the 
Means  of  bringing  them   to   Punish- 


13 

ment,  as  it  is  their  Interest  and  Duty 
so  to  do ;  but  supposing  the  worst  of 
them,  they  hope  the  King's  Subjects 
of  Canada  are  as  much  to  be  trusted, 
as  the  French  from  New  Orleans,  and 
ought  to  have  the  Preference,  consid- 
ering they  carry  up  the  British  Man- 
ufactures only.  I  have  also  had  many 
Complaints  of  the  Partiality  and  Vio- 
lence of  some  Comissaries,  but  as  I 
find  by  your  Letters  to  Lieutenant 
Colonel  Massey,  you  are  already  in- 
formed of  them,  I  will  not  trouble  you 
with  a  Repetition,  not  doubting  but 
they  will  be  properly  punished,  if  they 
are  found  guilty ;  the  British  in  par- 
ticular request,  that  for  the  future  these 
may  all  be  obliged  to  give  security  for 
their  good  Behaviour,  while  in  that 
Employment,  that  should  they  conmiit 
any  Injustice,  Partiality,  or  Violence, 
they  may  know  how  to  recover  proper 
Damages  in  a  regular  Course  of  Law ; 


H 

this  they  think  the  more  reasonable, 
as  tlicy  on  their  Side  p^ive  Bond  to 
observe  the  King's  Regulations,  which, 
if  they  do  amiss,  subjects  them  to  suf- 
fer for  it  in  the  same  Way,  and  not  to 
be  left  to  the  Mercy  of  a  Comissary, 
or  of  those  Indians  he  may  Hullo 
after  them.  They  begged  of  me  to  let 
them  have  a  Copy  of  those  Regula- 
tions, they  give  Security  to  obey,  and 
that  I  would  not  leave  them  to  the 
Information  of  a  Comissary  in  those 
distant  Parts,  of  whose  Partiality  they 
have  already  seen  many  Proofs,  by 
suffering  many  to  go  out  and  trade 
abroad,  they  suspect  for  value  received, 
while  the  rest  were  confined  to  the 
Fort;  That  whatever  was  the  King's 
Pleasure,  they  would  submit  to,  but 
still  it  became  necessary  to  be  apprised 
thereof,  as  they  must  considerably  les- 
sen the  Quantity  of  Merchandise  for 
these   Parts,  and   not   be    obliged   to 


15 

have  them  packed  up,  and  lodged  in 
a  Warehouse  without,  willingly  sub- 
mitting to  let  all  be  confiscated,  if  they 
sold  for  one  farthing,  rather  than  bring 
them  to  a  small  Market  in  the  Fort, 
exposed  to  all  Accidents  of  Fire  ;  this 
some  of  them  preferred  and  practiced 
at  the  Detroit.  Had  I  those  Regula- 
tions, I  would  have  given  them  a 
Copy,  but  I  am  as  yet  uninformed  of 
them — 

General  Gage  acquainted  me  you 
complain  to  him  of  seven  Persons  who 
are  among  the  Indians  without  Pass- 
ports, namely,  Capucin,  Lorain,  La 
Mottc,  Pot  de  Vi.n,  BartJiolomc,  Ber- 
geron, and  RicJiarville ;  The  six  last 
are  Canadians  and  have  been  settled 
among  the  Miamis  and  Ouias  from 
fifteen  to  twenty  years,  except  Pot  de 
Vm,  who  has  been  settled  as  long  at 
Detroit,  but  I  can  give  you  no  certain 
Account   of    Lapucin,    who    is    also 


i6 

among  the  Miamis;  it  is  supposed  that 
IS  not  his  real  Name,  but  a  fictitious 
one,  to  conceal  that  of  his  Family— 

I  have  given  some  Presents  to  the 
Indians  who  came  to  see  me  at  Mon- 
treal, as  I  find  it  was  customary  on  the 
like  Occasions,  and  think  that  Atten- 
tion to  them  must  have  good  Conse- 
quences — 

I  am  with  Regard  Sir 
Your  most  obedient 
Humble  Servant 
GUY  CARLETON. 
Sir  William  Johnson,  Bart. 
Supermundane  of  Indian  Affairs  in  the 
Northern  District— 


